A Change of Heart
by Alisande
Summary: Trory: Tristan is back in Hartford. Will Rory treat him coldly as she did before he left, or will she have a change of heart?
1. Default Chapter

Rory sat on the stool in the kitchen contemplatively eating her breakfast. As she twirled the leftover pasta against the plate with her fork, she thought of a time when she was happier, when her life seemed to have substance and stability. Ironically enough, she thought of her first few months with Dean. Although she treasured those memories of childish innocence shared with her first love, Rory was happy the relationship had ended; it was time to move on. But now her life was in a whirlwind and she couldn't manage to get a sure footing. As Rory continued eating, she started to worry if her Harvard dreams would pan out the way she hoped. She took another bite, and the spaghetti had the stale taste of an overused motel room. Rory knew it was going to be one of those I-hate-my-life kind of days.

As she cleaned up the dishes and headed out the door with her signature yellow Eddie Bauer backpack, Rory had one last sinking feeling as she remembered that her relationship with Dean was over and she had to move on. Something was missing in her lackluster life; she wanted more. Little did she know a change was coming her way.

***

It was Friday, so Rory decided to spend the afternoon in Hartford, as she would need to return in only a few hours anyway for dinner with her grandparents. Since there wasn't much else to do, she opted to grab a cup of coffee at the local coffee shop and drop by the bookstore to see what the new bestsellers were. When she walked in, the musty, dry smell of thousands of books, new and old, hit her. The massive rows and aisles of perfect books simply awestruck the young girl. Rory smiled and knew she was at home.

First, she looked at some books on political science – it was an area she would have to be familiar with as a journalist. As she browsed, Rory got a strange feeling – as if some massive event was about to precipitate. She felt a cool breeze on her neck as someone swept by. Rory rubbed her bare neck to get rid of the chill, but the deep musk smell that followed gave her a strange familiar comfort and she went back to her books.

Just a few seconds later, as if on perfect cue, a deep husky voice let out a chuckle. Rory stopped in her tracks; she knew exactly who it was. _How could he be here, now? Wasn't he hundreds of miles away? And why, of all places, is he in a **book**store?_ A million thoughts raced through Rory's head. "Mary, I was hoping you'd be here. You're even more beautiful than I remember.." his voice trailed off as he took a step closer to her.

Staring at the book in her hands was all Rory could do from lashing out at him in anger. How could he come back into her life like this after causing her so much angst and leaving with no more than a "Bye, Mary"? A lump formed in her throat as her palms started to sweat and she clenched her fist. The back of her throat started to sting as she tried hard to fight off tears. "Tristan," she began in a hurt tone, "I…I…" She couldn't manage to form the words in her mouth. "This must be a first. Rory Gilmore – speechless." Her eyes started to flare as she was about to turn around and face him in angry rage, but then Rory realized she didn't want to mess things up again. She had dreamed for so long about being in Tristan's arms and kissing him once again. _Gilmore, let down your guard. Do not screw things up this time with him,_ she thought to herself. Then she swallowed her pride and put on a sweet smile as she turned around to meet the boy who she hoped would become her second real love.

Rory gasped as she turned to find Tristan not even six inches from her face; she could feel the desire forming between them already. "You look good, Tristan," Rory said in an almost trance-like state. "I did it for you Rory. I did it all for you." At the moment, she didn't realize what the implications of that statement were, but she would come to know them in the coming months. Rory felt Tristan's electric touch as he brushed a few strands of hair out of her face and his fingers trailed down her face and neck. Her eyes started to feel heavy as she opened her mouth slightly and unconsciously moved closer toward the beautiful blond boy in front of her.

Rory felt his fingers on her lips as he quietly said, "There's plenty of time for that, but this is hardly the time and place Rory," and she came out of her trance. The air between them returned again to its musty bookstore feel and Rory fidgeted, pushing her hair behind her ears and uncomfortably shuffling her feet as her hands struggled to find a place, folded across her chest. "Right," Rory managed to stammer, still looking at the floor, clearly embarrassed at her willingness to succumb so easily to Tristan's compelling nature. "Do you want to go get a cup of coffee maybe?" she asked shyly. "Why of course, Beautiful," Tristan replied with a huge grin, and they walked out of the store in search of a coffee bar. Fortunately, Rory knew all the good places in town.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Characters aren't mine; plot is.

A/N: Thanks for the reviews! I appreciate them all -- good and bad. This is my first fanfic, so hopefully I'll get better at this as I go on. One reviewer noted that Rory and Tristan were a bit out of character in the first chapter, so I just wanted to explain that. Most of the Trory fics I've read have Tristan and Rory fighting the whole time and I feel the fics don't explore their relationship enough. So, I wanted to write a fic in which the characters don't spend the whole time bickering, but spend more time together and happy [I know, it's kinda sappy]. Of course, there will be bumps in the road, so don't worry, you'll get to hear some of that famous Rory-Tristan banter along the way.

Oh, and also, this fic takes place in the middle of Rory's junior year at Chilton, so she's about 17.

  
***  
  
_[Rory and Lorelai are riding home from dinner with Emily and Richard]_

"Ror, is everything okay? You look kinda pale."

"I..I'm fine."  
  
"Right."

"It's just.. Tristan. He's back. In Hartford."

"Tristan? Hot Tristan? Bible Boy? Satan? Are we talking about the same guy here?"

"Yeah."

"And so what's the problem then? Hot boy you're in love with, but won't damn admit it, returns to Chilton, and you're _upset_ about it? Clarification needed here babe."

"It's just.. I don't know. He _does_ something to me. I don't know what it is, but when he's near me my knees turn to jello, all attempts at witty remarks fly out of my brain and I find myself strangely drawn to him, almost against my will and good sense."

"Ah yes, the charm of pretty boys like Tristan has captured many girls over the years. Don't give into him Ror, he's trouble."

"I know," but Rory was beginning to think that maybe she liked trouble.

***

__

[Rory is walking to English class with Paris]

"But if we don't get this done by Thursday, then this month's issue of the Franklin will be late! Rory we can't let this happen. My resume is counting on this! I can't put on my application that I worked on the Franklin if no issue comes out this month! This is serious business. Harvard does not tolerate liars, especially when they lie about extracurriculars as important as this. I can't say I'm a decent editor if I can't even get out a monthly paper! Rory are you listening to me? Rory? Rory???"

"Oh, right," Rory replied, snapping out of her daydream. "Thursday, I'll have my articles done by Thursday. No problem," she continued, clearly distracted.

"Rory, what's wrong with you? Where has you mind been the past few days," Paris kept talking as Rory walked off to class, ignoring Paris and leaving her behind to talk to herself.

***

As Rory sat in English class daydreaming, she didn't notice the teacher had called on her. "Rory? Rory are you going to answer the question?"

"Huh? Oh uh.. Thomas Jefferson?"

"No, Rory. And this isn't History class. Could anyone else tell me what the predominant themes in The Fountainhead are?"

This was going to be a long day. Rory just couldn't get her mind off Tristan. She knew that she wanted him, but had he really changed? Rory wanted the sweet Tristan that kissed her at the party; the caring, sensitive, and adorable one -- but she didn't know if that was possible. Why waste her time with him though, only to get frustrated and angry again? Maybe giving into him wasn't such a good idea. After all, you can't teach an old dog new tricks, right? So Rory decided that maybe she'd take a step back for awhile and see if he was really the same Tristan that left her heartbroken the year before.

***

As Rory was fiddling with her locker combination, out of the corner of her eye she saw him leaning against her locker. "Hey Mary." She didn't answer. "What? Now you're not talking to me?" he said with a cocky grin. Yeah, she had been right -- he hadn't changed. Tristan still had that same arrogant demeanor as before.

"Oh were you talking to me? That's funny, 'cause I'm pretty sure my name is Rory. Did you forget so quickly?" With that, she gave him a pointed glare and walked away with a snobby gait.

"What was that all about?" Tristan said to himself. _Damn, you screwed it up again. How do you keep doing this DuGrey? Maybe it was just your imagination before, maybe she never wanted you to begin with._ But Tristan never was one to give up, so he decided to keep going after her, even if she broke his heart. He only wanted Rory to be happy, and he really believed that if she were with him, she would be.

***

__

[It's the end of the day and Rory is walking down the hallway to go catch her bus]

"Rory."

__

Oh no, what does he want now? I thought I made it pretty clear for him to stay out of my way. What, do I have to tell him off to get him to leave me alone? Can't he take a hint? Of course not.. this is Tristan DuGrey we're talking about.

Rory turned around with a scowl on her face, her head hung to the side in an impatient, annoyed manner. She just looked at him without saying a word, though she secretly reveled in the fact that he finally called her by her real name.

"I.. I just wanted to say I'm sorry."  
  
"For what?" Rory inquired, knowing very well what he was sorry for.

"I guess I came off the wrong way.. today, at the bookstore, before I left for military school. But I just want you to know I've really changed. I'm not the same person I was a year ago. I did a lot of thinking while I was away, and I realized that I don't want to be that old Tristan DuGrey anymore. I don't want to be a rich socialite if it means I have no loving family, I don't want to have meaningless relationships with girls I don't care about, I don't want to ruin all the opportunities that come my way. I know what I don't want -- I don't want that reckless, careless life I was leading before." His eyes were desperate and full of emotion and he saw Rory's expression soften a little at those last few words he said.

"Then what do you want?" she asked softly, her face suddenly showing a trace of sorrow.

"You," Tristan's deep blue eyes relaxed, showing his true feelings and letting Rory know he was sincere.


End file.
